theshatteredempireseriesfandomcom-20200214-history
Rienne Tault
' Rienne Tault' is the second child and closest confidante of the infamous Wayrest banking magnate, Eckhart Tault. Raised in the looming shadow of Master Tault's enormous (some might say, unreasonable) expectations - if not, perhaps, quite the crushing burden shouldered by her three brothers, - Rienne rose to the challenge with a stubborn insidiousness that would soon become her signature. A far cry, in many ways, from the sadistic brat of her adolescence - yet uncomfortably alike in many others, - she has since emerged as the city's one and indisputable "Queen Tault"; a moniker she herself detests, but which fits her only too well. __FORCETOC__ Appearance Short, and rather slight as well, Rienne Tault will not strike most as an imposing figure - not in her physical attributes, at least, and not at first glance. She is pale, but not the noble pale of the Iliac's best-bred aristocrats; instead, the complexion of someone who spends great lengths of time indoors. That said, her stature isn't quite a scholar's or a scribe's - she isn't bent, not yet, and is perhaps better described as "wiry" rather than "petite". It only takes a handshake to glimpse her life and character - the skin of her right palm is just a little rougher and drier than you'd expect from a woman of her wealth and stature, betraying her penchant for handling most of her written work personally. It is her face, however, that tips most people off about the young Miss Tault's true nature. There's nothing wrong with it, exactly; by rights, it should seem rather pleasant. And yet - her nose is just a little too straight, and her hazel eyes just a little too stern, and the cut of her face just a little too angular... and, well, maybe it could be helped if only the picture were framed by her black, curly locks - but she always keeps them in a bun at the back of her head... Really, it's almost like she chooses to be remembered not as a face, slightly pleasant if largely average - but as someone just a little... unsettling. Largely free of material constraints, Rienne's wardrobe ranges from the traditional to the unusual and eclectic; everything from ballgowns and elegant, if a little conservatively cut dresses to almost unisex jackets and coats. When it comes to everyday wear, Miss Tault does seem to favour the latter - dressing more often like a well-to-do scribe rather than a lady of high standing. Whatever her garb of choice, though, it will normally come in muted or darker colours, and most would agree that she looks her best in a very dark green. Much like her father, Rienne can be quite the sentimental hoarder; unlike her father, however, she spurns religious trinkets and devotional imagery for items of a more personal nature. Most notable - and functional - of those are her riveted spectacles (Rienne has been nearsighted for most of her life) - delicate little things with a thin frame of Nibenese make, usually fixed to her lapel with a matching silver chain. Biography For a time, it looked rather as though Eckhart Tault had no idea what to do with his one and only daughter. His sons, they were a straightforward business - thrown to the wolves as they came, one by one; his legacy, his disappointment and his soft-spot. And his wife, she seemed so elated; she had always hoped for a daughter, even as she put on a proud face for her firstborn - and she would treasure Rienne 'til the end of her days. But Eckhart was uncertain. And so he took a step back, watching and waiting. So Rienne Tault festered - for want of a better word - for a good few years, with little supervision and less limitations. Acting on sheer instinct, she never did come to cross that one final line in her father's eyes; but only just. When a little girl grows up surrounded by servants and flunkeys, when most her playmates are terrified kitchen-boys and wary cousins, instinct can only take her so far. She learned very early that most people talk back far less when they're properly scared, and that little brothers are much less witty when they're tied up to a pole in the stables - and you're the only one who knows that they're there. Still, little by little, nigh-unlimited freedom was starting to bore her. She saw the time and attention their father lavished on her brothers. At first, she was curious; then jealous; and then she demanded it. Tutoring gave Rienne structure - and expanded her arsenal. Slowly, yesterday's spoiled brat was moulded - moulded herself - into today's "Queen Tault". Tault money ensured her education, much like her brothers', was seen to by some of Wayrest's most eminent professionals; Tault stubbornness ensured she pulled through it all, thick or thin. What came out the other end was a woman dangerous enough to warrant more than a part in the Tault Bank; whether because he trusts her so much, or not at all, Eckhart has kept his daughter close at hand for a few years now. Talents Of all Eckhart Tault's children, Rienne is the only one to ever have made anything of the arcane studies their father insisted on putting them through. She may be far from a prodigy, and far from conventional - but in the circles she frequents, there is little call for lightning and fireballs, anyway. No, hers is the scrivial magic of Wayrest's most dangerous bureaucrats; where shorthand can prove more evocative than the longest tractates, provided you know which way to look at it, and where one misread symbol can mean a very real, and very gruesome, demise. Couple a talent for quite literally hiding things between the lines with a fair measure of the Taults' charming cutthroat determination, and the reason why Master Tault always keeps his daughter within hand's reach should become quite obvious. Category:Characters Category:Breton Category:Wayrest Category:Mercers